Microsoft paid for the development of many of the top Windows Phone 7 apps

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Although it wasn’t quite the 2,000 apps they promised at launch, Microsoft still managed to launch Windows Phone 7 with a respectable app library of about 1,000 strong. Not shabby considering how late Microsoft was to the current smartphone race, but as it turns out, not all of those apps were programmed out of sheer dev enthusiasm: Microsoft wasn’t adverse to paying developers to deliver when they otherwise seemed reluctant.

The revelation comes from a source speaking to GigaOM, who says that when Microsoft prepared to launch Windows Phone 7, they formed two teams: one team meant to reach out to the top fifty app makers of the world and another team that was meant to try to encourage everyone else.

Surprise! Those top fifty app makers ended up getting paid by Microsoft to make Windows Phone 7 apps. Apparently, Microsoft was ready to offer them either revenue guarantees or even hire developers themselves to work with these companies to develop their apps for them? Amongst those developers number IMDb, Yelp, Twitter, Amazon and Facebook.

“It’s not that we’re funding a team of developers to build apps,” said GigaOm’s source, “It was that without the apps the phone is incomplete; consumers will be handicapped if they don’t have a good Foursquare or Twitter app.

He’s right, actually. Windows Phone 7 needed some app momentum for a successful launch. It looks like Microsoft’s team did their jobs pretty well, even if they had to grease the wheels a little bit.